I was in love with Quake 1, as well. But had to be honest with myself that Unreal 1 offered a more interesting and immersive singleplayer experience. Quake's mod scene kept it going for me until Unreal Tournament came along and Quake rapidly became something I checked only every once in a while.

I could see that. I always wanted to go back and play Unreal and see what it was about.

Games are a bit like music in that the passage of time makes biases against genres or specific works seem silly. Especially since, as time wears on, the changing of the landscape can move so far away from what you like that you wish for anything that reminds you of what you liked in the first place.